Current Internet-based real-time communications include text-based Internet messaging (e.g., instant messages, etc.) as well as Internet telephony. For text-based Internet messaging, such as, for example, instant messages, a text message that is received in a recipient's absence may be retrieved at a later time because text messages are typically present on a recipient's screen as a part of the entire text session. Thus, for example, a recipient who has temporarily stepped away from the system may be able to use a scroll bar to “scroll back” to a message that was missed while the recipient was momentarily unavailable.
In contrast to text-based Internet messaging, problems are present in Internet telephony when a user is unavailable to receive an incoming message. Since Internet telephony is akin to conventional telephony in terms of user interaction, both users (i.e., a caller and a callee) must typically be present in order to maintain real-time communications. Thus, for example, when a callee becomes temporarily unavailable, a caller must typically await the callee's return before a conversation can ensue. Normally, this does not present a problem. However, if a caller is unable to await a callee's presence and wishes to relay a voice-based message during the callee's absence, then an inconvenience is presented to the caller. Similarly, if a callee wishes to relay a voice-based message during a caller's absence, then an inconvenience is presented to the callee.
Thus, a need exists in the industry to address the potential inconvenience that arises from a user's absence in Internet telephony.